On a Maryland defense headlined by a pair of first-team All-Americans in senior defenseman Tim Muller and senior short-stick defensive midfielder Isaiah Davis-Allen and complemented by two All-America honorable mentions in junior defenseman Bryce Young and junior long-stick midfielder Matt Neufeldt, fifth-year senior short-stick defensive midfielder Nick Manis doesn't get much of the limelight. And that suits the Annapolis resident and Severn graduate just fine.

“I don’t really look too much into that,” he said Tuesday. “I’m not playing the position to get noticed or get accolades. I’m just trying to win and do my part and play my role on the team. I just try to do my job.”

Manis, despite the lack of attention, is a valuable player for the top-seeded Terps (14-3), who rank 16th in Division I in scoring defense at 9.0 goals per game. The unit’s play will be significant in Saturday’s NCAA tournament semifinal against No. 5 seed Denver (13-3) at 2:30 p.m. at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.

Manis and Davis-Allen are the short-stick defenders who play with the first defense. Junior Adam DiMillo and sophomore Thomas O’Connell are part of the rotation at that position.

A two-way midfielder at Severn, Manis said he was approached in his freshman year in 2013 by coach John Tillman and defensive coordinator-associate head coach Kevin Conry about switching to defense.

“I was all for it,” Manis said. “I wasn’t highly recruited coming out of high school. So it’s not like I was coming in to be [senior attackmen] Matt Rambo or Colin Heacock. I just wanted an opportunity to play and an opportunity to help the team. This role fits me pretty well. I just try to lead by example and bring some energy to the team and bring some passion.”

Tillman called Manis “the unsung hero of our team.”

“He has been great on the field in terms of just playing good defense on and off the ball, the clearing game, ground balls,” Tillman said. “So all those things are really big. When we go out to practice, one of the loudest voices just in terms of getting practice started and getting guys right and getting them focused is Nick.”

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Despite sitting out his entire junior season in 2015 because of a broken foot that required three operations, Manis has been a dependable presence. His six ground balls and five caused turnovers this season are modest, but he acknowledged that his priority is playing fundamentally sound defense.

“I’m no takeaway guy, and I’m not really looking to create plays,” he said. “I just want to work within our system and just play my role. That’s all I can really do. I just want to help this team.”